TravsintheMartialArts

I'm not totally clear on the history of the style, since I only practiced it for a few months, but my understanding is that it was founded by Isamo Tamotsu. Sounds like the technical name is actually Renshinkan shorinji ryu.

Awesome pictures! This event sounds totally fantastic. I would love to do something like this if I ever get the chance. It can be difficult to get folks together from several different styles and avoid the typical egotistical crap and overcompetitive attitude. To have real, sincere, full(ish) contact sparring without all the griping, whining, and cheap shots is a rare and valuable form of training. Kudos on pulling that off, can't wait to check out the blog! ...Blah, gotta get my butt out to Phoenix.

I'm glad someone asked this question, because I was getting awfully confused myself. I trained at a Muay Thai/MMA school for about 4 months, and during most of that time refrained from using a lot of kicks I learned in Karate/Tang Soo Do because I wasn't seeing them used. Certainly, the more traditional Muay Thai people never employed much more than thips and round kicks (pretty sure side kicks aren't in the traditional curriculum), but I eventually came up against some MMA fighters there who used a lot of side kicks. Something tells me side kicks to the leg are probably illegal, but side kicks to the body are okay. I'm in agreement with the idea that most MMA fighters probably aren't training very hard in side kicks; they probably have plenty of other techniques in their arsenal to worry about perfecting. I have always thought side kicks were better used in self defense situations anyway. There may also be some serious bias against using techniques from more traditional styles; because they weren't designed for/successful in a lot of competitive fighting, they seem to be dismissed pretty readily, which I think is a bit of a shame.

Thanks for the warm welcome everyone! I look forward to hearing about everyone's training and learning from your experiences.

Ah, alright, sorry I couldn't help, and good luck with your search! TravsinMA

I like where you're going here, OneInchPunch. I'm definitely in agreement that "ranges" are more a guideline and learning tool, and can tend to de-organify and restrict the more dynamic reality of a combat situation. I'm interested in hearing more about the use of the Clinch as something in trapping range in JKD. I have only had minimal training in both JKD and Wing Chun, and some slightly more serious training in Muay Thai, but I have never tried melding the two. In my mind, I have always found the Muay Thai clinch a little too incautious for a street fight, given how vulnerable I feel (admittedly not a high level Muay Thai fighter) to groin strikes, eye gouges, foot stomps, chin na, and other close range methods illegal in competitive fighting while I'm in the clinch. While the arsenal of techniques I was taught from the clinch was indeed fearsome, I would be hesitant to try clinching with someone with more trapping experience than myself; I get the feeling I would get hit in quite a few ways that aren't allowed in the ring. Not only that, but as I was taught the clinch is to be emphasized at a -really- close range (so close the opponent cant get a solid hit on you, sort of "smothering" him/her) and trapping perhaps a little more space than that. If you could elaborate on this a little more I would love to hear what you've learned. Thanks, TravsinMA

If you have already tried speaking to your instructor, it might be time to take the initiative, and talk to some of your senior students about what they think can be done about the situation. I think you're right on in saying that senior students should set an example, and if they aren't, it's something that needs to be fixed. Of course, they might not listen to you, in which case you have something else to take up with your instructor... I'm absolutely with you, though; that sort of behavior is unacceptable and disruptive to a martial arts class. It is the total opposite of the kind of focus and mental discipline needed to properly practice combative techniques, especially at higher levels. If they can't put their mind in what they are doing, they'll never learn.

I think Van the man is making an excellent point here. While a dogi does indeed belong to the person wearing it, and they are well within their rights to wear them wherever they please, there is something a little disrespectful about it. This is not to say that people like Wastelander are intentionally disrespecting their arts or the martial arts in general; in fact, on the contrary, I think they are doing nothing of the sort. The issue here is cultural. People from western cultures associate a martial arts uniform as just that; a uniform, like one's team uniform in soccer, or, as someone put it, a bike uniform. The problem comes from the other cultural associations westerners don't usually attach to a martial arts uniform; that it is a direct symbol and manifestation of one's martial valor. For this reason, soiling or in any way "disrespecting" the gi (wearing it while eating, drinking alcoholic beverages, acting in an undisciplined manner, performing every day tasks) makes some of us cringe; mostly those of us who have had some of that eastern culture rubbed off on us in our training. Those who haven't aren't ignorant or disrespectful, just operating on a different cultural "ethos" of sorts. Long story short, while I wouldn't feel comfortable wearing my gi outside the dojo, I try not to jump to conclusions about those who do.

Hi Chrisw, I recently spent about 8 months in Lake Placid, FL, and found a great Karate school there which taught shorin-ryu Renshinkan. I can't find a website for that school alone, but did find the website for the larger association and their headquarters in Gainesville: http://www.gainesvillekarate.com/ Hope this is helpful! Shorin ryu is a beautiful martial art, keep up the good work!

I have absolutely had a couple of these moments, and what an unexpectedly sweet reward they were. Never have I been more assured of my training and more motivated to continue. I think one of the first was after teaching an Aikido seminar at my college and receiving a friendly challenge from a guest who was a state champ wrestler. He had been throwing my friends/fellow martial artists all over the mat for most of the seminar (not in a disrespectful or disdainful way) and was sincerely concerned that maybe the techniques we were practicing wouldn't actually work against a really intent attacker. If he had been particularly aggressive or belligerent, I don't think I would have accepted his invitation, but he was earnest about it and I accepted. We wrestled for four or five rounds, basically until we were pretty much exhausted. We agreed there would be no rules, but in the first round I knocked him off his feet with an atemi, and we agreed we wouldn't allow striking. The next three-four rounds went by in a flash, but I remember he had incredible difficulty actually bringing me to the ground, and couldn't throw me at all; I practiced everything I had taught, and did not resist or fight him, which seemed to pose a huge problem for someone so used to struggling against strength. When things finally went to the ground (a realm in which I was scarcely trained at the time) I acted on instinct and both times secured a rear naked choke before I knew what was going on. Satisfied, he shook my hand and said he was interested in taking up the martial arts; now he is president of the club I left behind. Respectfully solving matters of disagreement in the martial arts, not backing down from conflict, and turning these conflicts into constructive results. For at least one moment in my life, I "did" Aikido!

Hi everyone, I'm about a decade into my martial arts training but brand new to the online MA community and eager to make some new friends and colleagues. I have done most of my training in Aikido, Tang Soo Do, and Muay Thai, but have also trained in Chinese boxing, Tai Chi, and Brazilian Jiujutsu. I am most interested in learning about Wing Chun, Jeet Kune Do, Systema, and Bartitsu, which I have studied independently through friends and books. I recently started a blog (please see below!) on my experiences in the martial arts and am hoping to get additional feedback and ideas from the online community. Please feel free to check out my blog and post your input/comments, I may also be looking for guest posts in the near future. I look forward to chatting with all of you and can't wait to browse the site for all it has to offer. Thanks for having me aboard! Sincerely, Charles